Ronald E. Yates's Blog, page 40
March 25, 2022
Study Says All Stories Conform to One of Six Plots
It had to happen. A few years ago scientists analyzed more than 1,700 stories from classics like Romeo and Juliet to modern tales like Harry Potter and identified six core plots that form the building blocks of all complex narratives. Okay, now bear with me. Things get rather technical at ...
March 24, 2022
Elmore Leonard’s 10 Rules of Writing: Annotated
At least once every year I find it useful to take a look at the late Elmore Leonard’s 10 Rules of Writing. It is sage advice from a master. Every writer should read these rules and remember them. I’m doing my part by posting them here for your edification and ...
March 23, 2022
The Death of Free Speech in American Universities
If you have read my blog you know that most of my life—27 years of it to be exact—was spent as a reporter, foreign correspondent, and editor with the Chicago Tribune. But for another 13 years, after leaving the Tribune, I was a professor, department head, and dean at the ...
March 21, 2022
Rules of Civility: Some Advice From the Past and the Present
I recently read a fascinating article in the Epoch Times about, of all things, civility—or the lack of it in today’s politically, socially, and racially fractured world. I decided to share it with readers and my followers. Please take the time to give it a read. You might find it ...
March 16, 2022
Thomas Sowell: The Origins of American Wokeness
If you have never listened to Thomas Sowell, please do so now! The man is one of the most brilliant thinkers in America and has been for decades. Below is a link to an interview he gave in 1995! Sowell’s words are so prescient and perceptive you would think he ...
March 15, 2022
Will America Defend Taiwan Against an Invasion by China?
I first visited Taiwan in 1974. It was one of numerous trips I made to the tiny tobacco-leaf-shaped country 80 miles off the coast of mainland China during my career as a Chicago Tribune foreign correspondent. In the mid-1970s, Taiwan was a nervous place. It was caught in a diplomatic ...
March 13, 2022
Covering War: Why Journalists Accept the Risk
It was a U.S. senator from California named Hiram Johnson who may have said it best back in 1929: “The first casualty when war comes is truth.” Was Johnson the first person to utter those words? Probably not. But those eight words are about as true as any I have ...
March 12, 2022
Free Speech is Under Full Assault
When I observe what is happening to America—the country in which I grew up, in which I was educated, and that I served in the U.S. Army—I am appalled. Anarchy, violence, looting. This is NOT the country I know and love. This is an aberration, a disfigurement of our Republic. ...
March 3, 2022
Big Improvements to ForeignCorrespondent: It’s Now Easier to Comment
We at ForeignCorrespondent are always looking to improve the reader experience. We know some of you have wanted an easier way to comment and we have revamped the comment system to do just that! It is now much easier to comment. You do not need to create an account. Simply scroll ...
March 1, 2022
What do you like about Historical Fiction?
Historical fiction is one of the most popular forms of fiction being written today–along with young adult, zombies, romance novels, and sci-fi. I am interested in learning why people like historical fiction books. I have a few theories, but I would like to know what others think. I enjoyed writing ...
